In a vehicle capable of traveling by electric power supplied from an electricity storage device to an electric motor (e.g., plug-in hybrid vehicle or electric automobile), an air conditioning control device for performing pre-air conditioning has been proposed, in which operation of an air conditioner is started before planned departure time of the vehicle in order to make the temperature of the vehicle interior appropriate when occupants get in the vehicle (for example, see JP 2001-63347 A). In JP 2001-63347 A, pre-air conditioning is performed when an operator turns on a pre-air-conditioning request switch. During a period of charging an electricity storage device (secondary battery) using an external power source, pre-air conditioning is performed using electric power supplied from the external power source, and until a predetermined period has elapsed from the time that the external power source is detached, pre-air conditioning is performed using electric power supplied from the electricity storage device. Further, the air-conditioning capability during pre-air conditioning is adapted to be variable as time elapses.
In JP 2001-63347 A, however, as the pre-air-conditioning operation starts when an operator turns on the pre-air-conditioning request switch, the duration for pre-air conditioning is determined by the operator. As such, there is a case where the vehicle interior temperature does not become appropriate by the planned departure time (boarding time) of the vehicle, depending on climate conditions of the place where the vehicle is located, so that pre-air conditioning may not be properly performed.
Further, as electric power that can be charged into the electricity storage, device decreases when the temperature is low or high, if the electricity storage device has been charged by an external power source before pre-air conditioning is performed when the temperature is low or high, the time required for charging the electricity storage device increases, whereby the total time required for charging the electricity storage device and pre-air conditioning becomes longer. Consequently, there is a case where a sufficient time for pre-air conditioning cannot be secured, so that pre-air conditioning may not be properly performed.